In the last 36 hours we before we went to press (Jan. 3-4), snow fell on West Texas, causing dangerous driving conditions from El Paso to Midland, and prompting closures of I-10 and I-20 between those points. We didn’t have to drive much, so we didn’t. We did, however, thoroughly enjoy this show of natural beauty, with about 6” (according to our measurements at our place) of snow blanketing our town of Alpine. These photos we taken mid-morning on Friday, January 4.

ABOVE: Joe Molinar (center, just to lower right of cross) shoveled snow at Our Lady of Peace Catholic Church on Gallego Avenue in Alpine. Gesturing towards the church, Molinar said, “Nothing like helping the lord.”

ABOVE: Murphy Street and South Fifth Street as the ice on the roads was just starting to turn to slush. Tiny glimpses of blue sky were visible from time to time, but with a high temperature of only 33 degrees Fahrenheit forecast, it seems like a full melting is unlikely, and roads will remain iffy for the day.

ABOVE: yuccas on the edge of Sul Ross State University’s campus, on the east side of Alpine.

ABOVE: Brewster County Courthouse looking even more picturesque than usual.

BELOW: Holland Avenue covered in ice and snow.

ABOVE: Terlingua Ranch resident Tom Alex sent us this glimpse of the wintery scene in Terlingua, looking west from near the base of the Christmas Mountains: “This is what it looked like when I left this morning to run to town for gas. I’m sure my friend Bob in Alaska would say this is a light dusting of snow but we’re loving it and thinking about the moisture it will add to the ground.” (Tom Alex, photo)